UK sanctions have been announced against “despicable” individuals linked to massacre, rape and torture carried out by the Wagner Group across Africa.

Foreign Office minister Andrew Mitchell said the Russian mercenary unit, as well as assisting the Kremlin with its invasion of Ukraine, was “acting with impunity” in countries such as Mali, Central African Republic (CAR) and Sudan.

Mr Mitchell on Thursday announced 13 sanctions in a package aimed at individuals and businesses.

Officials said Wagner has operated in Mali, CAR and Sudan for several years where it is “aggressively pursuing Russian foreign policy interests” and providing military support to counter-terrorism operations which have seen hundreds of civilians killed.

Three of the sanction designations were targeted at the group’s top officials in Mali and CAR, including Konstantin Aleksandrovitch Pikalov, the so-called right-hand man of Wagner leader and oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin.

The UK Government said Mr Pikalov had been responsible for the torture and targeted killing of civilians.

Another of those hit with sanctions was the head of the Wagner Group in Mali, Ivan Aleksandrovitch Maslov.

According to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Wagner mercenaries, alongside Malian forces, massacred at least 500 people in Moura in March 2022, including carrying out summary executions, rape and torture.

Wagner leader Mr Prigozhin, who led a mutiny against Moscow last month, has already been sanctioned by Britain, along with several of his key commanders, for their part in Russian president Vladimir Putin’s attack on Kyiv.